1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to ornamental jewelry, and, more particularly, to jewelry for pierced body parts, such as earrings, and to devices and methods for piercing body parts.
2. Description of Related Art
Several types of fastening devices are known for attaching ornamental jewelry to pierced body parts, such as earrings for attachment to earlobes. Among these are conventional posts that typically are inserted from the front to the back of the earlobe and then are held in place by any of a variety of back pieces. In these types of fastener the back piece generally has a hole therethrough that is dimensioned to provide a friction fit between the back piece and the post. In addition, the post usually has a notch adjacent its back end that serves two purposes: (1) to provide the user with a perceptible indication that the post and back piece are sufficiently mated to keep the earring in place; and (2) to provide a slight barrier to the removal of the back piece once it has been pushed toward the front of the post past the notch.
Variations on the conventional earring attachment devices have been disclosed by Ford (U.S. Pat. No. 3,789,850), Johnson (U.S. Pat. No. 4,195,492), Tucker (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,242,886 and 5,546,094), Fountoulakis (U.S. Pat. No. 4,501,050), Sardelli (U.S. Pat. No. 4,580,417), Burkett (U.S. Pat. No. 4,630,453), DiDomenico (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,829,788 and 5,154,068), Seidman (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,901,409 and 4,928,367), Grier et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,771,613), Luceno (U.S. Pat. No. 5,018,365), Skalet (U.S. Pat. No. 5,375,433), Koland (U.S. Pat. No. 5,454,829), Greenwald (U.S. Pat. No. 5,456,094), Tobita (U.S. Pat. No. 5,669,239), Froud (GB 2,239,781), and Cale et al. (GB 2,249,252).
A platform for clipon-type or screwon-type earrings has also been disclosed by Tucker (U.S. Pat. No. 4,139,993). This device is adapted to receive the securing means of conventional nonpierced earrings but not itself to serve as decorative jewelry.
Several problems still exist in the known devices for affixing ornamental jewelry such as earrings to a pierced body part. For example, none of the known devices is comfortable for wearing while sleeping. In addition, a certain amount of digital acuity is required for inserting the post and affixing the back thereto. Such acuity is lacking in some individuals, either owing to aging or to a physical infirmity.
Further, when the earlobe or other body part is first pierced, the wearer typically is required to wear a standard ornament during the healing process, which may take several weeks. The wearer thus cannot immediately begin wearing desired fashion accessories.